The Pontipines

30 minutes

Jigsaws

30 minutes

Games

Go on a journey through the Night Garden, clicking to discover as you go. If you've got a webcam you can wash your own face with Makka Pakka, or spot yourself aboard the Ninky Nonk. You can also Spin the Gazebo to find some stories and do five makes.

Makka Pakka colouring sheet

15 minutes

Iggle Piggle

Information about In the Night Garden

Target Age

2-4 year olds

Episode Duration

30 minutes

Show Summary

Created by the team behind Teletubbies, this show appeals to very young children and follows a
cast of loveable, funny characters as they play together in a magical forest. Narrated by Derek
Jacobi, each half hour episode is filmed in a real wood and uses the latest computer animation
techniques to create bright and engaging storylines. The episodes are highly interactive as young
viewers will often copy the songs and dances of the main characters. The series has been
produced as a modern interpretation of a nursery rhyme book, and is fantastical, repetitive (with
all characters maintaining set characteristics) and uses song and dance to engage young
viewers and help them wind down before bedtime.

Main Characters

Iggle Piggle – An energetic blue character who loves jumping and squeaking and always
carries his red blanket with him.

Makka Pakka – A smaller character who lives in a cave, loves stones and is always making
sure everyone’s faces are clean. He carries a sponge and soap around with him and is often
found pushing his bike, which is called an Og-­Pog.

Upsy Daisy – A happy, outgoing dancing character who loves nothing more than performing a
routine and twirling around and is always found nearby her bed, which has a mind of its own!
She has a soft spot for Iggle Piggle.

The Pontipines and the Wottingers – Two families of 10 (two adults and eight children) who
live in semi-­detached houses at the bottom of a tree. The Pontipines are red and live in the red
house and the Wottingers are blue. They all like to dance in formation and chatter.

The Tombliboos – Three musical characters that have stripy outfits of different colours and live
in a round bush that has a series of levels and rooms – a problem when you lose something!

The Haahoos – Six huge, bright, floating characters that move slowly and fall asleep at the end
of the programme.

The Ninky Nonk and the Pinky Ponk – These vehicles take the characters around the Night
Garden. The Ninky Nonk is a train with three fantastical carriages that gives a very bumpy ride.
The Pinky Ponk is an airship that, despite its warning siren, often bumps into trees and
branches.

Educational Benefits

In the Night Garden helps children to:

Learn how to follow a narrative and recognise different characters.

Improve memory, by remembering each character's name, traits and quirks.

Engage with music and dance, by copying the main characters’ routines.

Learn about bedtime routine, as each show finishes with the characters all winding down and
going to bed.

Website benefits and summary

Play games that are designed for very young children and enjoy makes to create at home. There are also lots of colouring sheets to print out and six songs to listen to and join in with.

Games

Explore the Night Garden and Puzzle

The Explore game and the Puzzle game are designed for very young children who are just discovering technology and the internet. Go on a journey through the Night Garden with your child’s favourite characters, clicking to discover as you go. Children with a webcam can wash their own face with Makka Pakka, or spot themselves aboard the Ninky Nonk. This first introduction to the joys of joining in with favourite characters and discovering the world from the TV exists online, gives children a chance to feel good about themselves and build up confidence and familiarity with the computer.

Spin the Gazebo

Spin the Gazebo gives children different stories from In the Night Garden, and as with the TV programme, will help with following narrative.

Makes

The five makes are a chance to recreate your child’s favourite places and characters from In the Night Garden. Colouring, cutting and sticking are always fun and will help your child’s motor skills as well as their creativity.